Panama was discovered by Rodrigo de Bastidas in the year 1501, its calculated that at this time lived 400 thousand indigenous and in the sixteenth century they where exterminated by 95%

Pedrarias Davila established on august 15th, 1519 the city of Old Panama. In the year of 1671 it was plundered and left in ruins by the Pirate Henry Morgan, plundering it three times in total looking for gold. The ruins are being maintained until today and the most known are: The House of the Cabildo, The six Convents and the Metropolitan Cathedral. Other places to visit from those days is “the Casco Antiguo” situated on the west coast of the Panama Bay, “the Vaults” built by the Spanish, the Tour of the General Esteban Huertas, the Plaza of Francia and the church of “Nata de los Caballeros” among others.

The discovering of gold in California triggered the construction of the International Railroad, the same as the French Canal which consequently brought foreigners migrating to Panamanian soil.

Alter the failure of the French Canal, the US Americans initiated efforts to built a canal which was inaugurated august 15th, 1914 and was completely finished in 1920. The Panama Canal measures 50 miles from the Pacific to the Atlantic, and it takes between eight to ten hours for a vessel to cross from one side to the other.

The population of Panama is of 2.9 million people and it has a genes proportion of 37% indigenous origin, 37% black origin and 26% white origin; 40% of the population is concentrated in the capital.

Panama is occupied by seven indigenous ethnics which we can mention the following: Embera-Wounaan (Chocoes), Kunas, Ngòbe Buglè, Teribe, Bokotas, Bri-Bri.

Panama’s extension is of 2,000 kilometers and the total area is of 29,157 square miles or 75,517 square kilometers. A mountain range that forms the spinal cord of our country shaped like a laying down “S” with altitudes higher than 8,000 feet above sea level.

More than 1518 islands are located in the territorial area of Panama, the country of Panama has more than 500 rivers and more than half of Panama is covered by forests. Panama’s greatest elevations are: Volcan Barú 3,475 mt, Cerro Picacho 2,986 mt., Cerro Fabrega 3335 mt., Itamut 3,279 mt. and Echando 3,162 mt.

The political division of Panama is constituted by 9 provinces, 75 districts, 5 comarcas and 589 counties.

Panama has 15 national parks, a dozen of forests reserves and ten wild life shelters. The Barro Colorado is the first scientific tropical forest investigation center in the planet, the most studied in the world, located in the Canal in the Gatun Lake and is operating since 1923.